The field of the invention relates generally to a bottle for a flowable product.
One process of packaging a flowable product (e.g., liquid product) in a bottle is called hot filling. Hot filling generally involves filling the bottle with the flowable product at a temperature of about 90° C., sealing the bottle with a cap, and cooling the capped bottle. As the product in the bottle cools, a vacuum or reduced internal pressure is created. This reduced internal pressure tends to deform (e.g., dent) the bottle. To inhibit this type of deformation or denting, some hot-filled bottles include depressurization-absorbing panels. These depressurization-absorbing panels deform (i.e., become dented) under reduced internal pressure in the bottle so that the bottle retains its basic, overall shape and appearance.
Another process of packaging a flowable product in a bottle is called aseptic filling. Aseptic filling generally involves filling the bottle under sterile or aseptic conditions so that there is no need to heat the product to a high temperature, as with hot filling, to reduce bacterial loads. As such, the problem of a vacuum or reduced internal pressure deforming the bottle is diminished, but not entirely avoided. There is still the possibility—and high likelihood—that the filled bottle will experience temperature changes from the time of filling until consumption by a consumer. In particular, the filled bottle experiences a temperature change when the consumer (or other person) refrigerates the bottle. Because the inside of the filled bottle cools in the refrigerator, a vacuum or reduced internal pressure is created. Although the magnitude of the reduced pressure in this situation may be less than the reduced pressure in a hot-filled bottle, the refrigerated, filled bottle may still undergo at least some deformation (e.g., denting) as a result of the reduced internal pressure.
In addition to the reduced internal pressure experienced during refrigeration of an aseptically filled bottle, the bottle may experience lateral deformation (e.g., denting) during handling or shipping and when being gripped by a consumer. These deformation forces tend to be applied inwardly, similar to the direction of force applied to the bottle due to the reduced internal pressure. The bottle may also experience longitudinal forces tending to crush the bottle lengthwise, particularly when stacking bottles during shipping